Steve Geller rents condo to run for Broward Commission

Former state Sen. Steve Geller has to pay more than just the filing fee to run for a seat on the Broward County Commission. He also had to rent a condo.

That's because Geller didn't live in District 6, the coastal area he hopes to represent. His house is out west, in Cooper City.

Geller, 51, is running to unseat Sue Gunzburger, 70, to represent the district that covers parts of Hollywood, Hallandale Beach and Pembroke Pines. He rented a condo in the oceanfront Quadomain tower in Hollywood last month.

CANCELS EXEMPTION

Geller and his wife, Laurel, will keep the Cooper City house where she and their two sons live. He said he would cancel its homestead exemption -- which provides a tax break for a primary residence -- because he has moved out. ``My family and I will be spending substantial amounts of time in both locations,'' he said.

Geller admitted Friday that before settling on a run for District 6 he polled his chances in three other county districts. He said he did the polling ``four or five years ago'' to test his political popularity in the four districts that cover the terrain he represented as a state senator: Lois Wexler's District 5, Gunzburger's District 6, John Rodstrom's District 7 and Diana Wasserman Rubin's District 8.

But he said his heart is in Hollywood, which he has represented for his entire political career.

HAS KEYS

Asked about his residency in a recent interview, Geller held up a key ring with keys to Apartment 2203, where he said he has a one-year lease. He attended the condo's board meeting Thursday night, he said, and was shocked to walk in and see Gunzburger there. He said she looked surprised, too. She had been invited to speak.

The race between the two is expected to be nasty. Both campaigns are running attack ads.

Gunzburger said she and her family have lived in Hollywood since 1968.

She said voters in the district are fixated on jobs and the economy, ethics and the environment, and probably don't know about Geller's home in Cooper City.

``That Steve lives halfway across the county and outside the district isn't something that most voters think about,'' she said, ``or perhaps even know about today.''

Geller said his residency won't be an issue because he has represented that area as a state legislator for years, starting as a state representative in 1988.

``What they want to know is what are your ties to the district?'' he said. He has lived in Hollywood, Hallandale Beach and Pembroke Pines, and practiced law in the district for 20 years. ``I can drive around that district blindfolded,'' he said. ``I am better known in that district than she is.''

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